One Of A Kind
by Bad Banana Cherub
Summary: Kagome and Kikyo are as close as twins can be, so when Kikyo is called away as a prospective mate for the Taiyoukai of the west, Kagome follows in disguise. However, not all goes to plan and Kagome ends up enrolled in the army of a certain Lord Sesshomaru
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone again! long time no write hey? Well, I'm back and I'm here to write like mad. Some people have already read the first part of this story, so just skip to chapter 4. I've just worked on my grammar and rejiggled the chapters, so it was much easier to delete and start again then taking everything of and then messing around with it. Don't worry, I haven't given up :P**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, as much as I would like to, and so don't stick me in cuffs and cart me away please!**

**Enjoy the chapter folks xxx**

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**Chapter 1: A little black and white**

"AHHHHHHHH!"

A scream resonated down the hallways of the palace, disturbing the servants who were already going about their daily chores and waking the rest of the inhabitants. " What in the blazes of HELL have you done to my hair!"

The shrill voice continued to scream at who ever had upset the owner of the ruined hair. A servant who was passing the room shook their head in sympathy for the individual who had upset the mistress of the palace, but there was no way they were going to lend a hand to the unfortunate person.

Inside the room, where the screamed had issued from, a beautiful young woman was fuming. She had delicate features, melting hazel eyes and long, flowing black tresses, well... originally black but now an interesting mix of partially bleached white hair and original black, the reason for her current rage. The Hime was currently towering over a hunched figure who was shaking from head to foot with the effort she was using to control herself.

"What, do you think, gave you the right to do this to me?" The Hime's voice was frantic and infuriated. It was taking every ounce of the old maid's courage not to start laughing right then and there. " I happen to have an unimaginably important meeting in less then a hour," she took another step towards the servant threateningly, "the decision on whether I should be inspected for the Taiyokai's potential mate and you expect me," she was now standing directly over the shivering old maid, "to attend this important meeting with THIS?" she grabbed a chunk of her hair and shoved it into the maids face, emphasising her point.

The maid glanced at the princess's hair for a brief second, quickly looking away in fear of out right laughing at her Lady. " I thought you wanted to impress the Lord's men. You said you wanted to appear more like his idealistic mate…"

"Not by doing THIS!" the princess screamed at the maid, pulling at her hair, while the maid began to try and hide her growing laughter behind her hands. "I look like some sort of deranged Dalmatian!"

Suddenly there was a knock and the sound of a sliding door reached the pair of women.

"Kikyo, I swear that if you scream ONE more time, I'm going to hit y…." The voice broke away just as suddenly as it had started. A young woman, almost identical to Kikyo in physique, was standing in the door way of the room doing an excellent impersonation of a fish, mouth opening and closing in silent disbelief. Her crystal sapphire eyes, one of the few differences between the two, were wide and staring at Kikyo. Suddenly the peaceful silence was shattered when loud laughs erupted from the young woman's throat, stringing out into a continuous row.

The young woman doubled over as the force of her laughter left her throat. Tears started to creep down her cheeks. She wiped them away with a trembling hand, the strength of her laughter making her shake all over.

"W-what…the...he-h…hell…..hap-p-p-end?" she managed to voice, laughter breaking her question and making her wheeze. Kikyo shot her a sour look that could have killed.

"Shut up, Kagome, or I'll hit you first!" she turned her attention back to the servant, grabbing the front of her kimono, gazing at her pleadingly. "You have to undo it. NOW!" At this point Kikyo was almost in tears and was severely embarrassed, her splotchy hair hanging in front of her eyes to shield her red face.

"Well, I think the new hair really suits you! I always thought black and white should become the new thing." At this, Kagome fell into a fit of giggles again on the floor.

"I have to go greet the guests in less then an hour!" Kikyo was screaming at the maid again, who was now laughing uncontrollably behind her hands. She dived at the maid, shaking the old woman by her shoulders. "You HAVE to fix this. I can't be seen like this! Please save me... It's your fault you know!"

"What guests do you have to greet? I never knew anything." Kagome asked, curiosity lacing her voice.

"Some of Lord Sesshomaru's men at the gathering. All the eligible young women are going, so there's no way in hell I will even be considered with this... THING on my head!" Kikyo started to pull at her hair again, hard. "You've ruined my life! I'll never have a good mate and the family name will die with me and I'll become an old, withered, single hag….."

"Hey? I'm still here! And it was only a simple mistake, I'm sure she was only trying to help. You don't need to become a manic depressant because of it." Kagome gently chided, patting her sister on the shoulder briefly. She then quickly helped the older woman to her feet, who was having problems breathing due to her mirth. Kagome lead her out of the room so she could calm down and to remove her from Kikyo's way in case her twin lost her temper. "I'll just go find Kaede and see if she can sort it out for you, ok? Just don't do anything silly with your hair before I get back... Well sillier." She then closed the door and started to walk down the hall with the maid in tow.

Kagome turned to the old maid when they were some way down the hall. "What exactly WERE you trying to do?" she asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"I was trying to get my Lady's hair to the same of that of the western Lord's, as milady asked if I could help her fit in more with the Youkai crowd, she's very concerned about being rejected, but the black in her hair made it very difficult to get the colour she wanted." The old maid was looking at the floor in embarrassment. "I told milady it may take a few tries to get it to the desired colour, but she…"

"Refused to listen?" Kagome finished for the maid. It was obvious from her shame that she felt dreadful for what she had just done to Kikyo... well, to Kikyo's hair.

"Don't worry," Kagome reassured her "she gets like that a lot and I think you did a stunning job with the hair by the way!" Kagome praised the maid, laughing lightly.

"My Lady! You should not joke about such things …." The maid chuckled.

"Don't worry. I'm her sister, remember, , and although I don't act as such, I am still a Lady of the house, so I can say what I want." Kagome winked at the maid, smiling wickedly, extra fond of the little old woman because of her experiment with Kikyo's hair. "Now I need to get back to my training and find Kaede so I suggest you hide from Kikyo and find some other work to do."

Kagome then took off down the halls, beaming all the way to the kitchen. Another scream was issued from Kikyo. That made her smile even more.

'Ahh' she thought, 'this is going to be a good day!'

Kagome made her way through the palace to the kitchens, taking the long way round so she could calm herself. Even before entering the kitchens, she could smell the delicious scents of breakfast and the ever present smell of ash that was coming from the fire place. Kagome loved the kitchens. When she was a child, she often hid in there when she was in trouble with her father or one of her tutors, garnering sympathy from the servants and quite often a cookie or two. Kagome peered round the door, seeing if she could find Kaede to help Kikyo with her little… problem.

An elderly lady was bustling round the huge room, moving pots to correct places and checking on various pans, which were hopefully cooking Kagome's breakfast. The woman's face was creased with laughter lines and one of her eyes was covered with an eye patch; an attack from a lesser youkai years ago had resulted in her losing an eye.

Hearing the door creak slightly, the woman lifted her gaze and met Kagome's. A warm smile instantly light her face. "Kagome-chan, child, what brings yer here? Yeh ain't in no trouble now are yeh?" Kaede inquired, amusement clearly visible in her one good eye.

Kagome walked over and embraced the older woman, bending to reach her height. "Not yet, Kaede ba-chan" Kagome laughed. "No, it's Kikyo who needs you." Kagome could feel the beginnings of laughter bubbling in her throat. She couldn't wait to tell Kaede!

Kaede noticed the slightly mischievous smile that was spreading across Kagome's face. "Gods child, what's gone and happened now then?"

Kagome couldn't help the snigger that left her. Kaede gave her a dubious look. "Kikyo needs a bit of help. She had a slight…. accident."

"Nothing that's hurt her I hope."

"No! Well.. maybe her pride. She tried to bleach her hair, to impress Lord….. what's his name ….?"

"Lord Sesshomaru" Kaede filled in for her.

"Yeah, him, and... lets just say she isn't happy with the end result." At this point Kagome was out right laughing. Kaede had a very worried look on her face, but underneath that Kagome could see her anticipation to see Kikyo's new hair.

"Give me a minute to collect me things, child. I'll go straight to her."

"Wait!" Kagome stop her retreating form quickly.

"What is it child?"

"Umm…" Kagome gazed longingly at one of the pots on the cooker. "You don't think any of those are ready, do you?"

Kaede gave her a frank look and rolled her oneood eye. "Help yer self, child," she said while smiling fondly. " I made yer and Kikyo's favourite today, seeing how's it's a special day fer Kikyo and all."

Kagome hugged the woman fiercely. "Oh, Kaede ba-chan, you're the BEST!" she squeaked, rushing to grab a bowl from the other side of the kitchen.

"Just make sure you leave some fer Kikyo. She's gonna need it by the sound of things!"

Kagome laughed and ran to the pot with her bowl in hand, lifted the lid, and sighed in shear bliss at the heavenly smell that came from inside it. "Hmmm... Ramen!"

* * *

"Kagome, I've been looking for you." A man's voice called out behind her, making her head twist to see who was speaking. Her father was standing in the doorway of his study, smiling gently at her. He appeared to be in his mid-thirties, kind face void of wrinkles, but for the occasional silver strand in his black hair which was pulled up into a ponytail which revealed his true age.

"Oh, how comes?" Kagome turned to face her father. She had just been on her way over to the dojo to practice archery skills. Kagome was a Miko in training, hoping to become strong enough to help heal in the village when she was proficient enough, however, her father wished her to become a skilled warrior as well; the manor was known to be attacked often by stray Youkai and having a powerful Miko living there would help greatly to deter attacks in future.

"Let's talk in my study." Her father stepped out of the way, ushering Kagome into the room. Taking a seat behind his crowded desk, he gestured for her to take a seat opposite him. Kagome obediently took a seat on the cushions, glancing at her father's desk, over flowing with papers and documents. All though her family were humans, her father owned a small area of land, raising him to the status of Lord, a rare position among humans. As such her father was constantly busy, working on peace treaties with other minor Lords and peoples' requests and complaints. Kagome looked up to her father with great respect. He always strived to achieve peace and to keep the people happy, and succeeding on the most part, even though he was treated harshly by the other minor nobles. Most nobles were Youkai, however, the few human nobles that did exist disregarded him as an eccentric due to his continuous attempts at bringing peace between the two races. Kagome looked at her father's face, noticing the strain and fatigue.

"Father, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Kagome," her father smiled sadly, "I think you should look in on Kikyo quickly, she hasn't been acting herself recently."

"I saw her a couple of hours ago, she looked… well maybe not normal…" she sniggered, "but she seemed normal enough." Kagome gave her father a questioning look, wondering what he was talking about.

"She may appear to be fine on the outside," he raised his hand, stopping Kagome from saying anything, "No witty remarks please," he chided, shooting her an amused look. Kagome slouched down in the pillows with a pout, "but I believe she needs you more then ever. She's scared, Kagome, as I believe anyone would be who was facing potential marriage with out even knowing their partner. The importance of this alliance can not be described . She's been looking for the best prospective husband, has been training for it, for most of her life, to secure herself a good life as well as helping to ease the gap between our two races. She is honouring our family, as well as assisting our race. It is a lot of responsibility for one to bear on their own. I know you understand her burden as you bear one yourself. She has to be nervous, leaving her family and her childhood life. Anyone would be, so go and check on her. Make sure she knows she has support."

"Why did you not go yourself?"

He gave her a knowing smile. "Because you two have a special bond. She can talk to you far more easily. Also, I think she may not be too keen on me at the moment because of all of this."

"No, father, she loves you as much as ever." Kagome knew her father did not mean to sound cruel, using Kikyo's life as a way to gain political influence and to help in the over all idea of creating peace, but it was still unfortunate that her sisters happiness had to be sacrificed. "It's unfair on Kikyo,though, to push such a large burden on her. I should be the one being potentially bargained of to this Lord, seeing as I'm the oldest," Kagome stated. Her father shook his head, chuckling humourlessly.

"We've had this discussion before, Kagome. A Youkai mating a human is one thing, but a Taiyoukai taking a Miko as a mate is impossible. You are a Miko powers would conflict with his youki greatly, it could never work..."

"You don't KNOW that!" she protested, standing up and banging her fists on the desk, "NO one does! It's never been done before, sure, but that's not to say it's impossible," Kagome continued vehemently. "Surely I could go in her stead, she has her whole life before her…"

"NO," her father exclaimed. "She has spent her life trying to achieve this, Kagome. You should appreciate and understand that, instead of trying to write it off as you have spent yours training to become a Miko. You are much more use to everyone here, helping to heal and protect," her father reprimanded. Kagome sunk back into the pillows with her arms crossed tightly and a pout gracing her lips.

"I just think you should look in on Kikyo," her father repeated, "just to see if she is ok. She seemed a little off when I last spoke to her about it."

Kagome thought back on Kikyo's recent behaviour. Her twin HAD been acting a little out of the norm recently. She had actually being quiet for more then a minute at a time.

'But really,' Kagome thought, sobering, 'he's right. She hasn't been herself lately.'

"Has she got back from her meeting… thing?" He nodded. "OK, I'll just go find her," Kagome announced after a few minutes of quiet, "but she better appreciate it. I'm gonna miss archery because of her!" Kagome walked out of the study to the sound of her father's amusement, closing the door behind her quietly.

Kagome set of in the direction of her and her sister's joint room, guessing she would be in there after she had returned from the 'meeting'. Walking down the halls gave her time to think about the imminent future. If her sister WAS sent of to be inspected by the Western Lord himself, she may never come back. Kagome stopped in the hallway at this revelation, shocked. She and her sister had always been together, had never left each others side ever since their mother died.

'She probably won't be asked to go any way,' Kagome thought, 'not with all those demoness to chose from. We're just human. It's not like she'll get any attention from Lord watchamacalim…. I still can't remember his name!' At this, Kagome felt bitter. Although she didn't want her sister to leave, she still didn't want her to be pushed aside just because of her race.

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Kagome reached Kikyo's room in record speed, practically running there to see if her sister was all right. Flinging open the door, she marched into the room, bare feet slapping on the wooden floor. She quickly noticed Kikyo sitting on the floor, a bowl of rice in her hands and Sora sitting across from her, one of the younger servants in the house. Kikyo quickly put her bowl down, looking alarmed at how flustered Kagome was.

"Kagome, are you all ri….."

"KIKYO!" Kagome ran over and grabbed her sister by the shoulders. "Are you alright? " Kikyo gave her a confused look.

"Uh…yes?" she answered, making sound more like a question.

"Oh thank GOD!" Kagome sighed loudly in relief, still holding onto her sister. "I was SO worried that you'd get kidnapped or die or leave and not see me ever again or'…"

"KAGOME!" Kikyo yelled, laughing at her sisters lunacy. Kagome took a deep breath.

"What?" she panted, still trying to regain her breath.

"You were rambling. And WHY, exactly, did you have to run all the way here?" Kikyo questioned, trying to keep a straight face.

"I like dramatic entrances!" Kagome provided helpfully.

A sharp laugh brought both girls back to reality. Sora was sitting on the floor, laughing behind her hands at the sisters' antics. Kagome looked at Kikyo questioningly, before both began to join in.

"So, Kikyo, do you know what's happening now that the meeting is over?" Kagome asked once she regained her breath.

Kikyo sobered immediately, losing the cheerful look she had regained briefly. She looked at the floor, wringing her hands. Kagome became concerned. Sora noticed the change as well.

"If you don't need me any longer, I'll take the stuff back to the kitchen," she offered, standing and collecting the forgotten bowls.

"Thank you, Sora," Kikyo said quietly, the words only just reaching the servant who was retreating from the room.

Kagome looked at her sister, worried by her abrupt change of mood. "Ne, Kikyo, are you ok?" she asked, concern for her twin clear in the tone of her voice. She stood and sat directly in front of her sister, grabbing hold of Kikyo's hands to get her attention. Kikyo nodded, her hair swishing slightly, now back to it's original midnight black shade.

"I'm fine, just a bit nervous." Kagome gave her a sceptical look.

"Just a bit?" she pushed, seeing straight through her sister's obvious lie.

"Alright, maybe I'm a little scared. Excited, but scared."

"Do you want to talk about what happened?"

"I had no idea what was going on. All I did was stand there whilst father's adviser talked to the men there." She glared at the floor, hating her lack of control over her life. "They were so rude, Kagome! I'm glad father wasn't there. They looked down on me just because I was human! If that's what his men are like, I'd hate to see how Lord Sesshomaru acts!"

"THAT'S his name!" Kagome suddenly exclaimed, slapping her forehead. At Kikyo's questioning expression, Kagome chuckled. "What? It's a long name!"

"A bit of an ominous name if you ask me." Kikyo muttered.

"Come on, stop being pessimistic. I can't have my only baby sister upset now, can I?"

Kikyo looked affronted. "Only by FIVE minutes! Hardly enough difference for you to be calling me baby," she huffed.

"That's more like the Kikyo I know," Kagome smiled, glad her little plan had worked. Kikyo let a small smile grace her lips. "So, when do you find out what's happening?"

"A week or so, maybe less. According to Lord Sesshomaru's adviser, the West is in the middle of a very important negotiation with the Southern Taiyoukai, meaning I'm free for at least a few more days," she provided with a weak smile.

"Well then," Kagome yawned, stretching her back and arms till her back cracked with a satisfying click "we'll just have to make the most of it then, won't we!"

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**Thanks for reading xxx**

**Hope you enjoyed it!**

**;P BBC**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters! Only thing I own is my Sesshomaru plushie (squeeze's him in a death hug) ;P Hope you enjoy this chapter ^ ^

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**Chapter 2**

**The Lord Sesshomaru**

"Kaaaaaagome?"

A voice whispered through the door of the large library, echoing slightly in the vast room. The library was filled from sealing to floor with shelves and book cases containing scrolls and parchments, filling the area with the history of Japan and stories from around the world. In the centre of the room, sprawled on a mound of pillows sat Kagome reading one of the ancient scripts. Her blue kimono pooled around her legs and on the floor, the silver crane flying with the creases in the fabric while the yellow water lilies scattered themselves across her sleeves and lined the edges of the fabric.

She looked up from her scroll, something about the history of the families sacred treasure and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. The scroll was actually very old, yellowing with age and crumbling at the corners, dating back to before her great grandfather's time. It constantly mentioned something about the battle between good and evil and souls but that was the only thing she could really understand from it. It had originally seemed interesting but now she was tired and the scroll was annoying her because she just couldn't understand it; she had just happened to pick it up as there was nothing else to do. She saw Kikyo peeking her head round the library door, her hair styled into a perfect bun whilst the deep red kimono showed off her pale face. She looked as bored as Kagome felt.

"Uh oh... here comes trouble," she quietly sighed. "Everything alright?" Kagome asked more loudly.

"Would you come to town with me? I'm dying of tediousness here and Sora has left to go tend to her sick mother." Kikyo gave her a pleading look. Kagome rolled her eyes, silently laughing at how predictable her twin was, but paused after a moment.

'Sora's mother's ill?' Kagome looked thoughtful for a minute. 'I can check in on her on the way and it gives me an excuse to get out of here.'

"Sure, why not!" Kagome beamed at her sister. She wouldn't admit it to Kikyo, but she had almost been wishing for a distraction. "I just need to get my bow if we're going out. Wait a second." Kagome was half way out of the library when she was promptly stopped by Kikyo's hands clutching her arm.

"Can we go NOW? If you go get your bow, you'll have to walk past father's study and then he'll say no." She sighed loudly at this. "He'll tell me that I 'need to be contemplating my possible future' and 'making sure I'm a good wife' and yadda yadda yadda…" Kikyo groused, doing an impression of their father scolding them, chest sticking out with arms crossed and a stern frown set on her face making her purse her lips. Kagome laughed at her sister's antics.

"Ok, I won't go, but if we get attacked by youkai, you're getting eaten while I run away!" she joked, smiling at her sister wickedly.

Kikyo looked smug. "I'll just inform them that I'm the screamer and so they should go after you!" and with this, Kikyo pelted down the hall as fast as she could, laughing loudly, her kimono billowing around her in a wave of red.

Kagome shot off after her.

* * *

A sigh escaped the lone figure in the vast study, a rare display of emotion from the usually stoic male. Mounds of paper work filled the large mahogany desk in front of him and spilled onto the floors, originally organised piles scattered across the room while scrolls and parchments were flung into any space that was available in the spacious room. The Taiyoukai surveyed the destruction with a critical, golden eye, the colour of blazing summer suns. The once immaculate room, lined with beautiful panels depicting giant dogs and battle scenes, looked as if it had waged it's own private war against the inhabitant of the room, resolved on make his life as difficult as possible. A musty stench hung in the room, evidence as to who created this catastrophe.

"Jaken" he growled, malice lacing his voice. The only thing that could create that horrific smell was the slimy retainer that served him. Honestly, he didn't know why he even kept the thing around.

The toad had created a disaster the Taiyoukai didn't even realise was possible for him. Obviously size did not count in this problem.

'Your head is mine' he vowed silently. The Taiyoukai began to imagine, in vivid detail, the many ways in which he could render Jaken's head from his body and sever the toads limbs. The toad had destroyed his study, his work and his patience for the day, not that he had much usually. A knock on the door brought him out of his pleasant musings.

"My Lord" a man called out from behind the screen.

"Enter." The voice that replied was a rich, deep baritone, clear yet crisp and was a smooth as silk. The door slid open, revealing a kneeling man, dressed in armour and supporting a indigo crescent moon on his silver haori's left sleeve. The emblem of the house of Taisho. Black hair framed the tanned face while piercing green eyes gazed at him. The youkai kneeling in front of him was one of his advisers, as well as one of his generals. A kitsune youkai who was intelligent, quick and devious. The kitsune was perfectly adapted for his job, never failing to carry out an order flawlessly. He did not permit mistakes from his generals. The kitsune continued to gaze at his Lord.

The Taiyoukai standing in front of him seemed to be radiating anger in waves, causing the general to shuffle back slightly in fear. When the Lord was angry it was never a good thing.

'What could have happened to make him this mad?' The general, Akio, glanced behind his Lord and spotted the disaster sight that was his study. 'Oh,' he realised ' that might have done it.'

"Speak!" the cold voice snapped the general's attention back to the present. "What have you got to say, Akio?" His intense amber orbs bored into Aiko's, a sure warning that he was in no mode to be messed with.

"My Lord Sesshomaru. I have just returned from the village Edo, to observe prospective alliances." He pulled a bundle of letters which were bound together from inside his kimono. "These are all the possibilities I deemed acceptable." He handed the letters to the Sesshomaru, who had a quick look at the names on them.

"You may go now," Sesshomaru stated, waving his hand to emphasis his point.

"There is more, my Lord."

Sesshomaru stared at the still kneeling Akio. "More?"

" Hai." Akio continued. "The area we travelled to, the land surrounding the village, is having a few… difficulties… with some of the lower youkai that reside in the area. One of the human Lords, one whom is father to a prospective mate I believe, asked that I inform you of their difficulties and request your aid." Akio gulped. His Lords gaze had not wavered for a moment while he was talking, and the shear intensity of his stare was enough to make anyone nervous.

Sesshomaru contemplated the information in silence for a while. Although he himself did not have a great deal of patience or fondness for people, the people who were suffering were his subjects and under his protection. He had a duty to help them. 'Plus,' he thought, 'it gives me a chance to escape this mess'.

"I'll deal with the problem myself. Akio," the general nodded " keep things in order until my return, and clean this…..." he used his hand to gesture to the travesty behind him. He smirked.

Akio bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Yes, my Lord."

Sesshomaru walked to the door, but paused as an after thought hit him. "Oh, and Akio," Akio looked up inquiringly, "if you see Jaken, inform him his head is mine." And with this, Sesshomaru swept out of the room, leaving Akio in the study by himself. The kitsune let out the breath he had been holding.

'I thought for sure I was a goner there,' he sighed, relief flooding through him. 'That is one angry Taiyoukai.'

Akio then remembered his Lords last instruction and chuckled. He stood and began to leave the room when an idea struck him. An evil grin began to work it's way from the corner of his mouth, growing as his plan developed. Liking the ominous things he was going to make the toad do for causing him trouble, he set of in search of the slime ball, a smile plastered to his face while a fang peeked over the edge of his lip. He could hardly wait to deliver the news.

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The wind pulled at his silver tresses and caressed his clothes in its endless embrace. Sesshomaru flew at a speed that was hardly perceptible to youkai eyes, let alone human. The wind whipping around him gave him a sense of freedom he hardly ever experienced in this stressful time, being as he was confined to his study most of the time now with treaties to be signed, land disputes to be solved and the problematic issue of finding a mate so as he could produce an heir. All of these things, and more, kept him from roaming his land, freeing himself from the politics and problems of the other Lords and his people for even just a few moments.

Normally, for such a small problem, such as a rouge youkai, Sesshomaru would just send one of his guards to deal with the problem, but because of his constant confinement in the castle, he decided to deal with the issue himself.

The land underneath him was falling away at such as sped, he couldn't make out many details except for the greens of fields and the blues of lakes. He felt an itch in the back of his mind, one that could only be satisfied with the feel of fighting and the smell of blood, both of which he would hopefully be getting soon.

Flying gave him time to contemplate what was happening at present. The search for an appropriate mate was underway and many females, human and youkai a like, though more youkai of course, had been selected but many would not have a single quality he valued in them. Sesshomaru abhorred many things but women born into families that spoiled them and made sure they were only capable of pouring tea, acting as a proper lady should, sitting around and being useless came near the top of his list. Many of the women couldn't even read or write having not bothered to educate themselves in even those basic things.

Sesshomaru shook his head in bewilderment of what those females could actually accomplish. Very basic levels of intelligence and common sense were the most he could hope for from a mate and even then it would be a stroke of luck for him to find a female like that. He would not except such a useless mate, one that couldn't help run the lands or see to his peoples needs. 'Yet again,' he thought, 'this Sesshomaru does not wish for an unruly mate, one that will not obey and demands a great deal.' He thought to himself for a moment and let a rare display of emotion show on his face in the form of a wiry smirk. ' This Sesshomaru might as well mate one of his generals for all the qualities I need in a female.' He shook his head, angered at himself for letting thoughts like that enter his mind. 'All the trouble this is putting me through for an heir. If this Sesshomaru could have his way, I would simply take a female, have my heir and return to duties.' However, bastard children were frowned upon in youkai society.

His anger grew when he thought of why he had to have a mate. As a Lord of Japan, he was required to have an heir to carry on the blood line of his house and to ensure that there was a Lord in waiting should anything happen to him. This was common sense, however, the council of elders, the older youkai's and other Lords of Japan, had made a law. This law ensured that every Lord must have a mate before his 500th birthday. Sesshomaru was over 490 years old, very close to reaching his 500th year, only in a matter of months actually. This left him very little time to find a mate worthy of producing an heir for the west, bearing in mind it was quite difficult for female youkai to become pregnant, 'unless this Sesshomaru mates with a rabbit youkai.' Sesshomaru shuddered at the thought.

There was also the impending threat from the northern lands, a trouble maker stirring things up and talk of war had been a common rumour for the past few weeks. This was causing added problems to the Taiyoukai, further pressuring him and stressing him. It was a good thing that he had such tight restraints on his emotions and anger or he would have killed a majority of the ruling heads of Japan by now. He still remembered the council meet he was forced to attend, a small gathering to ensure an heir was being produced for the western throne. He growled, dredging up the memories of the encounter…

_… A letter had arrived from the council of Lords a few days earlier, requesting, practically demanding, that he attend a meeting to discuss a few issues regarding his lordship and the security of the western throne. The meeting point for the council was at the great palace of elders, a neutral meeting point between the four lands. This provided security and ensured no fowl play from any of the Lords._

_Sesshomaru had gone, albeit unwillingly; the fools made him want to tear out his own eardrums with the amount of rubbish they drivelled on about. Having arrived at the great palace, he was welcomed by, not only the other three speakers, but also by the rest of the Lords._

_Outside the palace, Sesshomaru had been greeted by the other Lords, one welcoming, one neutral and one with distain showing on his features as clearly as if was written on his forehead. Sesshomaru gave each of them his customary, trade mark glare, silencing all except the southern lord. A few of the Lords, and not to mention the speakers, repressed shudders when his gaze landed on them._

_The southern Lord, a great bear youkai by the name of Daisuke, the one who had greeted him warmly, continued to walk along side Sesshomaru as they entered the palace of elders. Daisuke was one of his very few friends, a person which he didn't constantly want to render mute. He and the southern Lord had known each other through out their lives, having played as children together when the great Inu Taisho and Masaru, their fathers, had met to discuss problems or just for social visits. Their fathers had been friends and Sesshomaru and Daisuke had continued the friendship between the southern and western lands. Daisuke walked beside him, offering him his silent support._

_The palace itself was a masterpiece of architecture. The twisting paths and towers that came from the central building overlapped each other in a complex pattern of stripes and crisscrossed routes. The overall effect was a beautiful mass of shining white marble, staircases, gardens, towers and rooms. The palace was an intricately designed work of genius, almost impossible to navigate, which was the whole point of the structure; to confuse assassins and potential threats from finding their way around and causing trouble. The palace was beautiful. Sesshomaru hated it._

_Daisuke looked over at Sesshomaru, giving him a sympathetic glance. The bear knew of his great dislike of this place. Sesshomaru always felt as if he was being constricted in the palace, protected in a pretty little labyrinth while being hidden away from the outside world. Sesshomaru had spent his childhood there, growing up in this palace as his father was always out on patrols, fighting battles or doing lordly duties. His mother had never been around either; she had always been at the courts, frivolously playing in politics, or with one of her numerous lovers, as his father was never there to see to her either. The palace was his place of weakness, the place where, as a child, he would hide and cry in corners or rooms because he hadn't seen his mother in a year or because he was beaten by his training instructor because of his lack of skill whilst practicing. Looking at the doors directly in front of him, Sesshomaru uttered a low growl and pushed the doors in wards, wanting this meet to be over with as soon as possible._

_Walking quickly, Sesshomaru found the great hall fast enough and walked straight into the room, a vast hall of white, paper screens lining the walls which depicted different aspects of each land. He took his swords from his waist and handed them to one of the servants that was standing to the side of the door, Daisuke, who was on his left, proceeded to do the same. The other Lords followed him as he entered. Swords were prohibited from the hall, a sign of trust between the Lords. Sesshomaru wouldn't trust some of them with a spoon, let alone a sword, but then he had nothing to fear. Even though he didn't trust the northern Lord, Sesshomaru was by far the more superior fighter, the strongest out of the Lords in fact. This ensured the safety of his lands as well as respect from the others._

_He took his seat in the west corner of the hall and watched as his speaker walked over to him, sitting on a cushion on the right of his raised chair. The other lords took their seats in the great hall and a gong rang out, declaring that the meet had begun. Sesshomaru could instantly tell he was not going to enjoy this…_

_"Lord Sesshomaru!" The northern lord had stood up, sneering down at him in distaste. The northern Lord was a skinny, withered looking creature with a mane of red and gold hair falling down to his waist, a few grey streaks showing in his unkept locks. His once proud and fierce tiger features had wasted away under an illness that had claimed him a few years ago. Lord Kouta was a lot older then Sesshomaru was, yet he seemed to have aged eons; youkai age very slowly, only a couple of years every millennia . The rapid growth at the beginning of a youkai's life was roughly the same to that of a human, but after their 20th year, youkai practically ceased to age at all. For a youkai to die of natural causes was nearly unheard of except for the very limited illnesses that youkai could pick up. Obviously Kouta had caught one of them, but for him to have suffered from it so much in such a small amount of time was unnerving. 'He deserves it, the smug idiot.' Sesshomaru continued to bore his gaze into Kouta's, molten gold burning against emerald green, trying to unnerve him and set him in place. It worked. The northern Lord averted his gaze and continued to speak, making sure that his gaze didn't meet the Western ruler's._

_"Lord Sesshomaru," he paused and took a large breath, "you have been summoned to this gathering in concerns with the lack of a mate and, consequently, a lack of an heir." He picked up a scroll that was on the table next to him. " Do you have anything to say at this point of time, regarding this issue?" he handed the scroll to his speaker, one who's age was betrayed in the lines and features of his face, his violet eyes shining with wisdom and cunning. The speaker stood and took the scroll from Kouta's hands._

_"I have nothing to say," Sesshomaru replied, emotions hidden behind his carefully crafted façade. The speaker then proceeded to talk. His voice rang through the hall strongly, echoing around the large room._

_"You know, Lord Sesshomaru, of the laws which regard Lordships and heirs?" the speaker respectively enquired. All though the speakers were respected and had a small amount of power, they were only representatives for each of the lands, a means to ensure there were non biased witnesses for each of the laws passed. The fact that Kouta had ordered his speaker to speak in his place showed that Sesshomaru had succeeded in disturbing him. Sesshomaru grinned despite himself._

_"This Sesshomaru does." The reply was calm and collected but he was starting to have an idea as to why he had been summoned in the first place._

_"Then you should know that in order to maintain your status you must have a mate, so your chance of producing an heir is secured, by your 500th year. Otherwise the right passes to your brother." A growl resounded around the hall, causing the speaker to tremble slightly. He had to gulp before he could continue._

_Sesshomaru could feel himself gripping the chair so hard it was splintering. How DARE they threaten him and his rightful place. His brother was a hanyou and there for was forbidden to take the throne. The speaker knew this, as did the other lords; it was a law that his father had tried to change once his bastard son had been born yet he could not get the other Lords to agree to it. They knew this just as well as he did and yet they threatened him with this?_

_"My HALF- brother will not be taking the throne, as well you know. It will be placed in his 'care' for less then a second then be sold to the highest bidder by you. Do not think this Sesshomaru an imbecile." His voice was vibrating with a growl. That, and his youki combined, wiped the satisfied smirk off of Kouta's face. Kouta then leaned down to his speaker, whispered something in his ear, then leaned back in his chair, the smirk returning to its full strength. The speaker paled visibly, the scroll in his hand shaking with suppressed fear. He cleared his throat._

_"hm… we..well… um…" Sesshomaru glared at the stuttering fool. His gaze seemed to snap the speaker back to life. "Lord Kouta… well... the scroll demands that… um… that you have a mate for you to continue to… um… maintain your… throne…" the male's voice had drifted of to little more then a whisper by the time he had finished. Kouta rolled his eyes._

_"What the idiot is saying is that unless you have a mate, you have no throne. Do you, in fact, have a mate?" Sesshomaru could feel his inner beast beginning to surface with the rage that he was feeling._

_Across the hall, Daisuke could see his friend's eyes turning red slightly. He glared at Kouta, wanting to strangle the fool for putting Sesshomaru in this state._

_The eastern Lord carried on looking at the seen before him with boredom. The northern Lord was making an idiot out of himself, whilst the western was sitting there, fuming, trying not to break one of the laws of the hall. 'I should put a stop to this before it gets out of hand.'_

_Sesshomaru, who had eyes only for Kouta, was startled out of his anger be the eastern Lord Kiyoshi standing from his chair. The eastern Lord was by far the oldest out of the four Lords and he never really contributed in the affairs. The old elemental was one of the few people that had known Sesshomaru's father, uniting the eastern and western lands. He was a water youkai, passive, and therefore usually refrained from joining in with the arguments unless it was necessary. The fact that he was going to participate in the discussion was highly unusual and Sesshomaru welcomed anything at the moment that wasn't Kouta's face._

_"Well, until it has passed his 500th birthday, this is not an issue. As long as he knows he needs to secure a mate by then, there is no issue. I believe that solves everything." With that the eastern Lord crossed the room, his haori billowing behind him, opened the doors and left the great hall._

_Sesshomaru lifted an eyebrow at the youkai's antics. He would have to remember to thank him later. He stood, drawing attention back to him self. "If that is all…" Taking a leaf from Kiyoshi's book he walked out of the room._

_Daisuke watched Sesshomaru's retreating form. "Well then, I think I shall leave as well." After he departed Kouta was left alone in the hall, jaw hanging open slightly, not quite comprehending what had just happened._

_...The thought of Kouta's shocked face caused a smirk to appear on sesshomaru's. However, the reason for the meeting quickly dissipated his moment of victory. Finding a mate…_

Sesshomaru glared ahead of him, dreading the difficult task that was facing him; difficult, not impossible. Nothing was impossible for him. Perhaps the youkai could help relieve some of the stress he was feeling. With that thought his speed increased, adrenaline for a fight rushing through his veins, spurring him on towards his destination.

* * *

"Hmm….. tamago nigiri…" Kagome silently sat beside her sister on the ground, eating her food with just as much gusto, savouring the sweet yet savoury taste of her sushi. After a full day of walking and shopping in the nearest village she and her sister were thoroughly worn out and the local food helped chase away some of their tiredness. Next to them lay a number of cloth bags holding everything they had bought in the village. Most of the stuff they had bought was in case Kikyo was sent of to the West as a potential mate; extra kimonos, hair combs, geta sandals, face powders and a large variety of make up, but a few things were for their father and Kagome. They had also visited Sora to check on how her mother was. Her mother had a small cold so Kagome had produced a medicine that would clear it up in a few days.

'A good day's work!' Kagome lay back on the grass, putting aside her food. The sky was just starting to darken, the sun setting in the distance over the farmers fields painting the sky in shades of vibrant red and orange, the soft outlines of clouds becoming a delicate pink. Stars were just starting to bloom in the sky, tiny spots of light in the shadows that were beginning to cover the land. Swamped fields further away copied the sun set, reflecting the burning colours of the sun as it sank below the horizon and allowing the sun see its own beautiful display of colour.

Kagome always loved to watch the sun set, especially when she was a child. Before Kagome's mother died, she would always tell Kikyo and herself a story about the sun. The story was about a princess of night, Elara, who lived in a palace of light, who, being in the castle for the whole of her life, never saw the suffering of the people of her land. One day the princess escaped from the palace, wanting to see the land she would some day reign over. What she saw made her very sad, people suffering from lack of food, people who were ill… everywhere she went there was sadness, so the princess decided to try and cheer the people up. Inside the castle was always bright and she was always happy, but out here, there was only constant darkness and every one was sad, so the princess decided to try and bring light to the people. She made a wish to the Kamis of the land to bring the people light and ran back to the castle to sleep. In the morning she awoke to a gloriously soft bed and a beautiful array of colours surrounding her. She stretched her arms to rid herself of sleep and suddenly heard cheering. She looked down below to see all the villagers gazing at her in wonder and amazement. She realised her wish had come true and that she had brought light into the villagers lives so she rose into the sky to keep the people of earth happy, but everyone needs sleep, so at the end of the day she bade good night to the villagers and slept in her bed of clouds. Every day the princess says hello and every night she would say until tomorrow.

The story was something Kagome loved to hear when she was little. She loved the story so much she used to try and stay up till the sunset and say good night and then try and see the sun rise, but her father forbade her from trying to do that again when she had started to fall asleep during her tutorials.

She loved the sun because every night that it set, you knew that in the morning it would rise in the sky, no matter what had happened the previous day. It was a constant in her ever changing life. When she had first lost her mother, she had turned to the sun as a friend and had found strength in it, strength that had helped her to look after Kikyo and her father. However, if she lost her sister, Kagome wasn't sure if she would be able to remain as strong as before.

Kagome turned over to find Kikyo looking at her. Her sister, her twin. Kikyo had been with her through everything, had always been there for her when she couldn't cope, there for her when she was ill and there for her when she needed comfort. They supported each other and looked out for each other. If Kikyo was selected as the Western Lord's mate then Kagome would probably never see her again. 'I can't just leave her,' Kagome sighed, 'I can't. Some how I have to…'

"Ne, Kagome, are you ok? You're looking really weird at the moment, not that that is unusual," Kikyo queried with a smile, a look of concern on her face. Kagome started to laugh. Moments ago she had been contemplating how she could go with her sister, the next thing, said sister is insulting her. 'Then again, why would I want to get stuck with that?' she thought lovingly.

Standing up, Kagome wrapped up the rest of her food and put it in one of the bags. Picking up her share she started of down the path, looking behind her at her sister who was still sitting down. Kikyo was pouting slightly. Kagome gave her twin a questioning look. "What?" Kikyo looked up at her sister, her pout becoming a full blown set of puppy dog eyes. Kagome groaned. "What do you want?" Kikyo's smile was sickeningly sweet.

"There are an awful lot of bags to carry here," Kagome's eyebrow twitched, "and I am nowhere near as strong as you," the eyes closed next, "so…. Don't you think it would make more sense for you to carry more?" The sweet smile grew even stronger. Kagome glared at her sister.

"It's your crap! I'm being nice enough as it is to carry even half of it! Get of your lazy behind and carry the rest of it or it gets left behind," she growled. She then proceeded to march down the road, leaving Kikyo to pick up the bags as quickly as she could and follow behind a steaming Kagome.

* * *

Sesshomaru was nearing his destination. He could smell it. The thing smelt fowl, even from this distance away. Another stench was laced with this scent though… a fresh, more prominent scent… something you usually only smelled in battle… blood. The creature stank of blood. Human blood. Sesshomaru flew faster, wanting to destroy the creature before it could wreck anymore havoc.

* * *

"Kagome, can we PLEASE slow down, I'm worn out enough as it is!" Kikyo continued to drag her feet along the ground, falling behind Kagome's quicker pace. Kagome glared at her sister.

"Kikyo, keep it down," she hissed, trying to be as quiet as possible, whilst making sure her sister got the point. "I don't like the feel of something… something's not right! We need to hurry home before we get caught up in what ever it is." She continued at the previous pace, holding onto Kikyo's hand this time. Kikyo, sensing the urgency from her sister, went as fast as she could. Practically running through the woods now, keeping as low as possible and as close to the trees as the path allowed, Kagome and Kikyo travelled through the dark.

Kagome kept urging her sister on, trying to make her hurry. Kagome didn't want to alert her sister to the fact that there was something very evil close behind her due to the fact that Kikyo would probably break down crying and refuse to move, too scared to carry on. Something was coming up behind them and Kagome was pretty sure it was a youkai, one that wasn't a friendly neighbour looking for directions. She could feel it coming closer at an alarming rate, could almost smell the fowl stench that came off of it. Its malicious aura spelled its intent clearly for anyone with half a brain cell. Hunger. It was hungry. The two of them were safe for the moment due to her aura extinguishing their scents, but soon enough it would hear Kikyo's moaning at that would make it realise that there was easy prey walking just in front of it. Dragging her sister onwards Kagome pulled Kikyo into a full out sprint. Having trained for this kind of thing, Kagome was fine with the speed and the pace. However, Kikyo, trained to be a wife, not to run, was breathing very heavily and was quickly slowing in speed. Suddenly Kikyo's hand was wrenched from her grip and a cry escaped her sisters lips.

"KIKYO!" Kagome whipped around to find her sister lying on the floors, ankle trapped between roots, dirt and tears smudging her sisters usually immaculate make up. She bent down to take a look at Kikyo's ankle. "Are you ok?" she asked, trying to distract Kikyo from the probing at her ankle. Kikyo cried out when Kagome tried to free her ankle from between the roots. 'I guess that answers my question,' she thought grimly. It looked like her sisters ankle was twisted, and wit the fact that there was a very dangerous youkai behind them, Kagome was starting to panic. Her sister couldn't move and yet they had to keep going. She would have to carry her sister and hope for the best.

Kagome tore the sleeve of her kimono off and secured it around Kikyo's ankle to prevent it from moving too much. Having discarded the bags a while before, Kagome didn't need to worry about losing excess weight. Once she was sure Kikyo was ok, she lifted her onto her back and started to run as fast as she could. Only to stop. On her back, Kikyo let out a blood curdling scream.

* * *

He was directly over the beast when he heard a shrill scream from below. The sound was very female but he could not detect the scent of women coming from below. The youkai's scent must have effectively blocked out most others with its horrific stench. Preparing himself, Sesshomaru allowed his youki cloud disperse, letting himself plummet to the ground. His hair and clothes whipped around him as he fell. With an earth shuddering impact, he landed and turned around. The sight that greeted him however was not one he was expecting.

* * *

Behind her, her sister lay against a tree, softly crying. Kagome stood with her fists raised, separating her sister from the youkai that was standing in front of them. After screaming at the sight of the youkai, Kagome had quickly had to dodge a lunge from the hideous creature, rolling over and ending up in a heap of limbs with her sister. After quickly untangling herself, Kagome had hastily helped her sister to sit against a tree before turning back to face the youkai in front of her, leading to this point in time. Kagome continued to watch the youkai, when, quite suddenly, she noticed a small white object in the corner of her vision. As the youkai was so tall, Kagome had to crick her neck back to see into the face of the youkai, so the small white object falling from the sky would have gone unnoticed had it not been for her position. Looking closer at the object, Kagome noticed it was a man. A man all in white. He looked like an avenging angel, falling from the heavens in her time of need. The man continued to fall to earth without the youkai in front of her realising anything. Kagome smirked when she realised whereabouts the man would be landing.

Taking a few steps back from the youkai, Kagome smiled at him and waved, encouraging the demon to step closer. The youkai looked at her in bewilderment, then grinned sadistically. Just as the creature was reaching for her, a ball of white entered the youkai's sight. Glancing back at the girl, he saw her smiling happily.

Kagome watched as realisation dawned on the creatures face. With a cheery "Good bye," the man landed on his target with a shuddering impact, squishing the youkai to pulp beneath his feet. There was no way on earth that it was going to be getting back up now. Regeneration was possible with youkai. Half a leg to a full one she could believe, but from squishified to solid… no chance of it coming back. The man was still kneeling, not having moved from his landing position yet. With his back to Kagome, she could see the silver tresses that fell down his back like a waterfall of liquid silver. His kimono was white, just as she had seen from the sky, but what she hadn't seen was the blood red sakura pattern that traced his sleeve. Black armour covered a large portion of his back, blocking her view of the rest of the kimono while swords were at his waist, held there by a yellow sash. The overall impression was one of a wealthy Lord. Swiftly the man stood from his kneeling position and turned around, causing Kagome to gasp.

* * *

A young human, little more then a girl stood in front of him, dishevelled with a kimono sleeve missing and covered in foliage and mud. Behind her, he could see where the missing sleeve had gone to. Another human girl was behind her, her face covered in ruined face paint, made worse by the fact that she was crying. The two of them looked a little similar, he noted, and a little attractive... for humans. He quickly banished those thoughts from his mind. Probably a maid and her charge. The girl in front of him was standing directly in front of where the youkai had previously been. Obviously she had been the one to lure the youkai beneath him while he was falling. The fact that he was falling and didn't have a way to change direction with out the youkai grabbing the girl before he could get to her had meant he had to land on the beast, killing it in an instant, rather then allowing him to have the chance to render it limb from limb as he would have preferred to do. He now had no prey. No prey to quell his anger or help suppress his annoyance. Since he had no prey, he turned on the next best thing. The person who had taken it away. With a growl he confronted her.

* * *

He was beautiful. Ok, hardly a man, she had no doubts about that when he had stood up perfectly unharmed after a fall of that height, not to mention crushing a youkai flat! When he had turned around, liquid amber eyes had bored into hers, little suns in a pale, alabaster face. His features were truly angelic, another betrayer of his non human lineage. Delicate stripes graced his cheek bones, deep crimson slashes that made his pale face appear almost luminous and a single crescent moon lay between his brows. He was beauty's embodiment. And then he opened his perfectly formed mouth and ruined the whole appearance.

"Wench, what manner of stupidity possessed you to do something as ludicrous as that?" he all but growled. The voice that was scolding her was deep, smooth as velvet and crisp as freshly fallen snow, yet had an underlying rumble, one that made her shiver slightly and not with cold. The captivating lull of that voice almost had her drown out the words he was saying. Almost.

'Angel my arse!'

"wha… pardo… wh… what?" she asked in a disbelieving voice. Kagome was flabbergasted by what he said. STUPID? Her idea had just saved him a lot of trouble; having to fight the thing with her, having to try and kill it and then having to clean himself off. All he had to do was step in a puddle for a few minutes and VOILA! a clean set of boots. Then what he had addressed her as clicked in the back of her mind and she glared at him, wondering what to purify of his pretty behind first. "Wench?"

Sesshomaru just watched her move her mouth up and down in a fluster, trying to form words that were obviously not coming to her. 'Wonderful, another thoroughly incapacitated female.' He had just about decided to kill her then and there if she uttered another stuttered word when he caught the first syllable she had said that actually made any sense. He looked into her gaze and was surprised to see a great deal of fury there.

She continued to glare at him. "I repeat again. Wench? Do NOT call me that ever again." This time her voice had risen a little to make sure he had heard. All he did was raise a questioning eyebrow at her.

"Wench, I may call you what I like, whether it be wench, human or whore. You have no right to speak to me like that."

"Pardon?" Her voice had gone dangerously low. Kikyo, who was still sitting behind her started to fidget slightly. The last time she had heard her sister use that voice, a man had been incapacitated for a week due to the fact that she had broken his nose and three of his ribs. However, the man, correction, youkai, standing in front of her seemed to have no idea that he was about to face a VERY angry Kagome. He just continued to look at her like she had lost her mind.

Kagome growled low in her throat. "I have a name. Kagome, got it? KA-GO-ME! And you better use it, buddy, or the next time you use another pet name, I'll purify off certain things so at least when you next say it, it'll sound a little more humorous!"

A sudden force slammed Kagome into a tree, knocking the wind out of her and pressing against her throat hard enough to bruise. The male who had been standing directly in front of her had suddenly blurred, letting Kagome know he was the reason she was pinned against a tree. Somewhere in the back of her mind it registered that Kikyo was screaming her name but the pressure from the hand around her neck had her undivided attention. She looked up to see his beautiful face merely centimetres away from her own, his eyes turning crimson at the corners. He growled in her face.

Sesshomaru had had enough of this girl's pride. The girl had insulted him and had insinuated that she could harm his person. The final straw had been when she had mentioned removing certain features from his body… how did she say she would? He glanced at the girl he was currently pinning to a tree by the neck. The other girl was screaming her name over and over again, which was slowly pulling at his already frayed nerves. He growled down at the trapped girl and squeezed harder on her neck to garner a response. She grabbed his wrists. "Let me go," she wheezed, hardly able to talk with the amount of pressure he was applying to her neck. He squeezed harder in response. "I said, let me go!" Her voice was low and angry, and would have been impressive if he hadn't been crushing her wind pipe so tightly.

He looked at the girl in disbelief. Did she actually believe she could tell him what to do? He had complete control over the situation, she had no way of escaping him! Slowly, she lifted her head to glare at him.

"Your funeral," and with that, she set her hands on both his wrists. Suddenly, a blinding pain over came his senses and a burning sensation filtered into his pain fogged mind. 'What is she? What is she DOING?' Sesshomaru quickly released the girl and the blinding agony in his head was reduced. The pain in his arms, however, had reduced little from when she was actually holding him. He looked down at his wrists and saw two, bright red hand prints there, the skin either side a tender pink. He then looked at the girl in bewilderment. A soft, pink glow was surrounding her hands, slowly travelling up her arms and across the whole of her body. Then he remembered how she said she would remove his body parts. Purification. 'This must be why I can't sell their scents...' He looked closely at the girl.

She was holding onto her neck and breathing heavily, but the aura that surrounded her spoke in volumes. Sesshomaru could not remember a time when he had encountered a miko of this strength, and many of the strong mikos he had met had killed many of his companions. He glared at the girl. She was obviously a threat, a large one at that, and there for needed to be eliminated. Quickly. He was just about to draw his sword when the other girl, the one accompanying the miko, started to scream.

* * *

**mwuahahaha, a bit of a cliffy, but not much.**

**well, watcha think? :)**

**hope you have enjoyed it! will be working on the plot line later today... have a few evil ideas! :P**

**BBC xxx**


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